Vegetos

Abstract

Usually farmer irrigates crop by heavy metal polluted river water due to shortage of water in dry season in Dhaka. This polluted water mainly enters to rivers as an industrial waste. The aim of the study is to assess the extent of heavy metals accumulation in soil and crops due to irrigation with industry-fed polluted river water on agricultural land. Samples of water, river bed soil and crops have collected in dry season from Bongshi River in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The collected samples have been analyzed for seven heavy metals namely Cr, Cd, Pb, Ni, Cu, Fe, and Zn using Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometry (AAS) in the laboratory. The results showed that considerable amount of these heavy metals have been found in tomato, pumpkin and red amaranth indicating heavy metals exists in our food chain. Heavy metal concentration in rice plant have found in order of root> straw> rice. Results also revealed that concentration of heavy metals were higher in river bed soil than polluted river water as heavy metals deposited in river bed. Consumers around Dhaka might intake toxic metal through their food including vegetables and crops which indicates they are facing severe toxic threat from food chain. This study recommended that soil, crops/vegetables and water quality monitoring, together with the prevention of metals enters, is a prerequisite in order to prevent potential health. Effluent Treatment Plant (ETP) should be used to all the dyeing and chemical industries before dispose to the rivers.